The Aftermath
by SnoBolt
Summary: When you fight for something for so long and you finally achieve, what is there to replace that determination? What happens when all you do is survive, and relieve the events of that day?


**This is a Minecraft story (Obviously) about what happens after you beat the Ender Dragon, and where you tend to go from there. Reviews appreciated, flame if you want or tell me how to improve like a decent person.**

**Minecraft (c) Microsoft / Mojang**

**This story and its characters belong to me.**

When they come back, they always talk about "The golden rewards" and the "Egg of the monster" and the difficulty that comes with obtaining these things from the dragon in the dark. However, no one ever tends to mention the other things that come back with you...

"Do you really have to go Tac?"

"There's a lot of unexplored lands out there Eltay. Plus, it could mean big rewards for when I return,"

Tac's younger brother stomped his foot. "But that could be years! And not everyone always makes it back!"

Tac smiled sadly, looking at his mother. The family were just a few out of many, all of Tac's friends were there as well, along with their own parents and families, all asking the same question and the same answers being given.

"I'll be different." He replied, attempting to reassure all 3 of them, and walked off.

Tac stepped onto the gangplank and onto their ship, which was to carry them to a new continent. It had taken Tac and his friends from his village so much money to buy passage to the unknown isles, where they could claim victory. In any case, they had to come back eventually because they were all male, and they all wanted families of their own someday.

Tac was a handsome man, with spiky brown hair and a brown longcoat to match, covered with pockets to hold all 36 items, should every pocket be filled. His boots had black and yellow stripes over them, as a hazard warning, and he wore a brown overshirt and pants to match. He was a young man, at only 19 years of age, but had a decent physique, and wild mind. Ever the studious type, he had done research into the unknown, and was designated the group's chief Redstone engineer, as well as architectural.

He and all his friends had heard the stories of the heroes, who braved unknown, unexplored territories, to bring back the egg of the enderdragon. It was well known that not all survived, but the risks were worth the reward. They would find new lands, build a life for themselves, and fight the enderdragon to return as heroes. However, some did not come back at all, some made their lives out there, and some...well, some ended up in the ground.

The colossal wooden boat lurched forward, as Tac and his friends set sail towards uncharted waters, excited to make land as soon as possible...

The events of that day were now over a year ago, and a lot had changed.

Out of the 12 that left for the unknown, only 3 now rested in the land they had made their own. Their ship was destroyed by ice almost immediately after making land, and the harsh winter of the area had forced the group to abandon it. They started out like they were back at school, punching trees, mining cobble, getting iron and coal. But then, as time went by, things changed. The group left, one by one, some to try and get back home, others were killed, and not always by mobs.

Tac still found it ironic that the former friends had turned on each other like that, and the instigator, Tac's former friend Chike had been banished, Notch knows where he was now...

Tac was lured out of his daydream by a skeleton arrow, to which he responded by returning fire with his own volley of arrows, before continuing through the frozen tundra. The whole land, as they had discovered was covered in snow, which is why their house was just a front.

The house they used now sat on top of the largest hill around, giving them unparalleled views in every direction, though the real house was underneath. Cave after cave after cave, perfectly cut to cube shapes with tunnels running between them. The dirt above acted as a good insulator, keeping the heat in and the cold out, and the lava in the walls helped as well.

Tac walked up the long bridge, that allowed him to reach the front door much easier than ascending the hill every time. He glanced behind him, where their animal pens sat, along with a large kennel for numerous wolves. He ushed open the front door, and tapped his boots on the stone brick floor, shaking the snow off the now faded yellow and black stripes.

"Close the door!" Came a shout from below.

Tac did as he was ordered, closing the door and keeping the heat in.

"Notch preserve us Tac..." The voice said, coming up the stairs from the caves. "We're trying to keep warm!"

It was Lucky. Well, lucky was his nickname, since his own name, as he put it, was "Too hard for you to pronounce".

"Sorry" Tac apologised, holding up some Jungle Tree logs, the reason for the trip through the snow. At least Tac that they could now enjoy some cookies, which Lucky grew the wheat for in the caves, in an artificial farm. The surface was excessively cold for crops, and any water froze almost instantly, yet another disadvantage of the world they chose.

Lucky smiled, taking the logs and glancing at the animal pens through he windows. "Are they OK?" He asked. Since the battle, the animals were his escape, helping him forget...that day.

Tac nodded, then began heading towards his room. He threw his armour and blade down on the floor, sitting on his bed, staring at his glass ceiling. It had, at first been a joke, but now he liked seeing his friends walk by, going about their business.

The third member of their group, Imon, was working on a new room, but was heading to bed. "Time to head off guys I think,"

Tac and Lucky nodded, and the 3 made for their respective beds, falling asleep almost instantly.

"Tac I need you to have a look at the Redstone for the fence tomorrow,"

"Sure, but Lucky I need some more food first,"

"OK. I also need some more bone meal, Imon can you take care fo that,"

"Sure," 

The discussions usually were about stuff like that, battling mobs, gathering materials, mining, anything to make survival easier. Tac made a note of grabbing some Redstone, since Imon had more than likely done it wrong, and closed his eyes to sleep.

When they opened again, he was in another room.

Stone Bricks.

A portal.

"Alright, let's get this egg," Tac heard himself say, and leapt into the portal. When he stepped through the other side, he was greeted by hundreds of purple eyes staring at him, and a winged beat flying in the distance, over a mass of alien-looking blocks.

He drew his blade, and, with his 2 friends, launched into destroying the cubes that healed the dragon. The battle went on blade against claw, blood and poison puddles and stains littered the ground.

The battle raged on and it looked like they had it beat. This was it, they could go home, they would be heroes they could...

Snap. Crunch.

Tac looked up to see the dragon pinning him to the ground, and opening it's mouth, where it prepared to unleash a blast of purple fire.

3

The 2 locked eyes, and the panic in Tac's was visible. His friends saw, and began running towards the dragon.

2

A soft glow was visible in the back of the dragon's throat, which gradually grew brighter. His friends began producing bows.

1

Fire.

Tac screamed, wide awake in his room again, looking around in a wild panic, his face pale and sweat cold. Imon rushed into the room, and saw the state of him. There was no need to ask what had happened; the 3 were well acquainted with the terrors that claimed their nights. Tac gave a weak thumbs up, the signal that he could manage alone, and Imon went back to bed.

When he did wake up in the morning, they went straight to their business, not talking anymore about anything other than survival. Tac went to fix the Redstone, and went back to the sheep pen. Since the incident with the fire, he had became slightly blind, so enjoyed seeing his collection of sheep with all different dyed coats, the contrast made it helpful to see.

Lucky went about breeding cows and growing crops, and not talking about the day. He had saved Tac back then, producing a fire resistance potion, though his throw had been a fraction too late to completely save his friend. They were all scarred, in some way or another, each having met their match in the time that they had been there.

Lucky shuddered at the memory, and the trio knew fully that while they may have hit the ground running, the ground hit back twice as hard. Lucky and Tac went about their work, not speaking anymore, not like they used to, when everything seemed...safer and...happier.

Tac had seen his condition before, from his mother's work in the hospital. She called it posttraumatic stress, and it happened after great traumatic events, and the inability to live them down. After they beat the dragon, all those emotions of panic and fear took place, replacing the bravery and determination that was lost when one reached their goal.

Tac sighed, and went back to working with the sheep. Truth be told, it still surprised him, the 3 had always been the strongest, the most likely to succeed, but...Tac hadn't expected them to do it alone. That was why he bothered with the sheep and wolves, replacements, and a distraction from what truly scarred him.

On the horizon, he spotted them. 2 jet black creatures, with glowing purple eyes. Imon spotted them too, and came sprinting down the stairs, charging at the monsters. Tac followed suit, drawing his blade and dousing it in water, and slashed at the endermen. Eventually, they killed the intruders, and took an ender pearl as their prize. Tac threw it onto the ground, smashing it under his boot. Since Lucky had discovered they could...whisper...they preferred to destroy them rather than keep them.

Tac sighed, looking at the sky, remembering all the tales of heroes, and smiled. What a lie. Then he looked at his face in the reflection of his blade, and grew angry. How could they go back to how it was before? Was there anything he could do - anything to say?

Tac watched his friends determination as they beat away the mobs close to their home, and spoke.

"Let's do it again,"

The 2 wheeled around, killing their respective mobs.

"What?" Lucky asked dumbly?

"Let's go find a new land, and kill another enderdragon,"

"Why?" Imon asked, confused at Tac's sudden revelation.

"I can't stay here, too much bad blood. Too many memories of..." He faulted. "That night..."

Imon nodded, and then grinned. "Ok, it's better than this place, I never liked it anyway," He joked.

Lucky nodded in response, a smile on his face. "I bet if we made some small boats we could find somewhere by tonight?"

"Sounds good," Tac replied, grinning. This was the most the 3 had said to each other in months, and it felt good to talk about something other than food or Redstone.

The 3 set out that night, a new spark in their eyes, a spark that continued for a long time, until Tac returned home with his friends, with an ender egg in tow...each. As they walked back through the town where they had set off from many years ago, Tac made a note to smile to the crowds and children, with the knowledge, that, unlike many other heroes, nothing but the egg had came back with him.


End file.
